And no, it’s nothing like filling a gas tank.
Well said…. and as to utilizing maximum capacity all the time, as a motor/moto sport enthusiast, I think the best analogy would be engine, brakes, and tires - the ultimate limitations on motor vehicles, arguably just as the batteries are to smartphones.
If you’re competitive/racing, yeah you want shift at redline, stand on the brakes as hard as possible, corner at max lateral Gs, every chance you get. Then you can change the brake pads/tires every race, and rebuild the motor every few races - that comes with the territory.
However as an enthusiast driver/rider on public roads, call it ‘mechanical empathy’ or whatever, I just prefer the 50-ish% utilization category - typically operating between 1/3-2/3rds range of my vehicle’s capabilities - that just feels to be the right sweet spot. A thousand HP Bugatti in NYC traffic would kill the car, and wringing my 250 dualsport on a spirited road trip with my liter-class buddies would kill it. Use the right tool for the job.
iPhone’s are spec’ing well into the 20–something hours of SOT these days, and folks might be surprised at how easy it is to get close to the ‘up to’ spec, just by turning-off a few things you don’t use, don’t care about, or even may not realize is consuming power… and some battery savings features may even improve performance. Examples: Apple using your phone/battery as an AirTag crowdsource beacon and the WiFi-calling feature (1 cellular bar in my home).
My phone’s SOT is into the teens hrs - I only have time for half that in day, so ~50% cycling is fine for me, and I can always charge higher for the occasional backpacking trip.